Zagospodarowanie terenów zagrożonych powodziami w małych miastach województwa łódzkiego

The main objective of this article is the evaluation of the contemporary land cover of areas exposed to floods. Two small towns in which flooding risk is high - Poddębice and Uniejów in lodzkie voivodeship, were chosen for detailed analysis. The area exposed to floods means an area that is probable to be covered by water once for a hundred years. The evaluation of the contemporary land cover was based on Topographic Database as well as local stocktaking, and supported by the use of GIS tools. The exposed areas aren't protected enough on the local level as far as planning instruments, especially local spatial development plans, are taken into consideration. As a result, the directives formulated by the heads of Regional Water Management Boards aren't used in practice, because they restrict land development of the attractive areas and hamper local economic development, even despite the fact that those areas are endangered by floods.